Our Journey
by ReaVenom
Summary: This book is about three girls who run away from an orphanage to be together. Along the way they meet some friends and foes. Trying not to be seen or caught by the police they are always on the run. I would love some feedback on this book. NOTE: this is one of those books that don't get good tell like the fourth or fifth chapter.
1. 1:Who?

Taylor and I had been living in this orphanage for eight years now and we had grown closer than best friends. We had become sisters along with Bree.

1: Who?

"Feeling well yet?" I asked Taylor as I was climbing into my wooden bed. "Yeah, I just faked it the last hour or two so I wouldn't have to get up," replied Taylor. "Lucky! Mr. Hushen was being extra mean today!'' I said with a yawn. "Night" Taylor and I mumbled in unison like every other night I could remember. My head hit the pillow and I fell asleep.

We all have jobs here at the orphanage in the summer unless you're under nine years old. Mine is to take care of some toddlers, Taylor is less fortunate. She has to work in the stables. I would have had to but I'm allergic. My job fits my personality because I LOVE kids, but they can be a handful sometimes. The jobs we have just add to the number of things we hate about this place.

As Taylor and I got up to go to our "jobs" she startled me with a question, "Have you ever thought of running away?" "No, we have shelter, food and a room together here," I said realizing it could be better. In almost all the movies I watch that's what the poor person says, not the rich. "True but…" her sentence was interrupted by the bell that meant somebody wanted to adopt someone. We put on our clothes and raced to the main room not wanting to get in trouble. Luckily we made it just in time. The young couple was asking questions but I couldn't pay attention because I was to surprise that someone might actually get adopted.

About an hour latter Mr. Hushen came into the playroom as I was playing with the kids. When he was finished I rushed out to Taylor in tears. "Reagan what's wrong!" she asked dropping her pitchfork. "They want to adopt _me!_" Taylor looked startled. All she did was stare "Tay!" I said to get her attention then dropped my voice to a whisper "We have to run away! I don't want to leave you…..or Bree." "Reagan we can't bring Bree she'll slow us down and she is just be another mouth to feed" she stated. Bree is a five year old we shared a room with. She was as small as a three year old and had blond hair like me and Taylor. She had the greenest eyes that looked at me; her eyes told me she depended on us. I knew we couldn't leave her.

"Tay, she needs us! She would be crushed if we left her." Realizing that I was right, she asked, "When will the come to take you?" When she put it that way it scared me even more. "In a week," I answered numbly. "Perfect! Enough time to get ready, tell Bree, and gather food," was her reply. "I better go before I get in trouble," I said meekly as I left the stables.


	2. 2:Mama Reagi

Taylor and I hadn't told Bree yet, but were getting ready to. We didn't know how or when or if she would take it well. Taylor told me I had to do it, tonight. I was scared of the whole idea while Taylor seemed excited. We had spent the last two days packing and stealing which I wasn't so sure about. That night at 11:00 I woke Bree and Taylor. We broke the news to Bree trying to put it into words a five year old would understand. She took it very well and agreed. Then I laid her back on her bed and she fell asleep. Tay and I started to talk about our plans. Unexpectedly Mrs. L came in. "Girls! You both know that the building is quiet after 9:00 and it's two and a half hours later! You might wake the little one. Double shift tomorrow, both of you." She left and us "Girls" fell back into our beds and groaned.

When I woke the next morning Bree was gone but Taylor was still asleep. I looked at the clock and remembered last night. Almost screaming I woke Taylor, "Up, up, up! Hurry we are going to be late for double shifts!" She got up and we hurriedly got ready in under 15 minutes, just in time.

I take care of five kids plus Bree who is the oldest. They all call me Mama Reagi instead of just Reagan. I guess I spend the most time with them and give them the most attention and that's why they like me best. There are three girls and three boys aging from two to five years old. Double shift doesn't affect me as much as it does Taylor. For Taylor it adds an hour at the beginning and three at the end. For me it just adds an hour at the end and an hour at the beginning.

Wondering what life will be away from here my thoughts were interrupted by a sharp, "Reagi!" from three and a half year old Kate. I rushed over and immediately Kate started, "Jason pushed me over!" I looked at Jason, "Did you?" "Yes." "Why?" He shrugged his shoulders then they both started crying; Jason because he was in trouble and Kate because she now had a scrape on her elbow. My punishments were starting to have no effect so I was going to try something new. After I bandaged Kate (because she insisted) I grabbed two chairs and placed them in the middle of the room one and a half yards away. I told them to sit in them, stare at each other and frown. They both obeyed so I left to go play with Tom, Bree, Bryan and Faith. After ten minutes I went back to Jason and Kate who were making faces at each other and laughing. My plan had worked. I sent them into the playroom then joined them to say good-bye. Then I left to go help Taylor in the stables.

As we worked we kept quiet. No one could know I was there because I would get in trouble or they would yell at me for spoiling my white dress.


	3. 3:Where to?

We only have two days left, but we leave tomorrow. All the bags are under Taylor's bed. Bree has a small back-pack packed with a doll, two water bottles, a tennis ball and all our money: $57.00. Tay and I are traveling pretty light too. My pack-back has two changes of clothes for each person, a sewing kit, more water bottles, band aids, a note-book and 6 apples. Taylor has 5 cans of vegetables, bread, butter, cheese, three light blankets, paper and colored pencil (because she loves to draw) in duffle bag.

That night we went to bed early to get more energy, but it didn't help. I woke up to Bree sobbing quietly. As I wondered what happened I ran over to her, picked her up and ran to the bathroom so we wouldn't be heard. When I looked at her tears started pouring out of her eyes. Hugging her close to my body I patted her golden braids I had braided three hours earlier. She hid her face in my shirt and suddenly the door knob wiggled. I froze, however I relaxed when I heard the voice, "Rea, Bree it's me…Taylor." Unlocking the door, still holding Bree, I held my breath. Not because of fear but because of relief. Taylor came in and locked the door behind her, "I woke up and neither of you were there, I figured you would be in here," She said, also felling relieved. Then she sat on the floor next to me and Bree zoomed to sit on her lap. She faced me and finally, I asked her what was wrong. "I want to leave here but…" "But what?" Tay interrupted. "But I like it here with my friends." "Bree, you have a choice but you can't have both. If you choose to stay you must not mention us. If you come we will never come back, but if you come you will be with us," I said kindly but firmly. She stared up to me with her big green eyes, and then she replied, "I choose you!" in her tiny voice. "Good, we leave tomorrow?" I asked Tay. "Yes," She answered quite sure. "Where to?" questioned Bree. "Ummmm….-" "It's a surprise," I quickly cut in then winked at Taylor because neither of us knew. Bree then laid down with her head on Taylor's lap and fell asleep. We looked at each other and knew we needed to find out where we were heading to. "Maybe we should go to the nearest city then figure it out." "Nah, we need to get out of the state. No one will miss us," I stated. "True. Where though? Arizona is the closest." "Perfect! I'm so thankful it is summer." "Yes, plus Flagstaff has forests we could hide in. We would have to leave before snowfall though," Taylor said with a grin on her face. I remembered the map in my back pocket and spread it on the floor. "We are so lucky we are so close to the border between Nevada and Arizona," I whispered under my breath as we got up. Taylor gently picked up Bree and we went back to our room to sleep, but I lay there awake. All the bad thing hit me. No friends, no education, and mostly no home (we would almost always be on the run until we got to flagstaff, which might take a week on foot avoiding people and we would have Bree). Not long after my brain shut off and I fell asleep.


	4. 4:Almost Free

That morning I woke and saw I needed to rouse Bree and Taylor. We all walked to breakfast together. Since it was Saturday we had the day off so we to the playroom after breakfast. All the kids love unexpected visitors on Saturdays. When we got there only Tom, Bryan, Bree and Jason were there. Taylor and I played with them for two hours then we left to go to the game room. It's like the playroom, but for older kids. Taylor walked in then right back out. I didn't know why so I peeked in and it was really crowded. Instead we took a soccer ball outside and played for a while. At twelve we went in for lunch. Lunch was sandwiches like always and I devoured it because I was so tired from playing soccer. As I was finishing Taylor sat waiting with Bree on her lap. I took the last bite and we left to our room. I told Bree to take a bath and then Taylor and I took showers. When Bree was finished she came out with a long purple dress on. Knowing that it would too hard to run in with a dress on I told her to put shorts and a t-shirt on, luckily she obeyed. She then sat on her bed and I put her hair into pigtails. She was adorable!

Soon it was five o'clock so we went back to the cafeteria for dinner. We all got second, even tiny Bree, because we knew we needed the energy. I watched Bree and Taylor leave to our room, eventually I got up and slowly followed. When I entered I saw telling Bree that she shouldn't put her pajamas on. I crossed the room and Bree ran up to me. "Tay says I shouldn't put my P.J.s on!" she cried. "She is right," I stated calmly, trying not to make her angry. She looked very confused. Even though it was only eight I helped Bree brush her teeth and put her to bed. We were leaving at midnight and she needed her sleep. Taylor and I also brushed our teeth and climbed into bed with our shorts and t-shirts on. I fell asleep instantly.

_We kept on running but they were gaining. Sirens wailed and lights flashed as police yelled. Soon we were trapped by a brick wall with no escape. _I woke with a shudder. Were we overreacting? Would they even care if we were gone? Yes they would! The orphanage might not but my going-to-be jailers might. That's what I had decided to call the people who wanted to take me away from Bree and Taylor. I had seen the news channel . Almost every week they showed missing children and succeeding searches. The worst part is we have no way to lead them away from our trail. Oh my! That's what teens had done! They acted like they had died by floating their clothes down rivers or hanging them off cliffs. Sadly we had no cliffs or rivers.

It was 11:30 so I woke Taylor up and by 11:45 we were ready. Taylor picked up sleeping Bree and we scurried out of our room, down the stairs and through the game room to the back door. I jiggled the knob, but it was locked. Taylor handed me half asleep Bree and pulled a paper clip out of her back pocket. She bent it then slid it into the key hole. Two minutes ladder it was unlocked. We stepped outside and shut the door quietly behind us trying not to make a sound. I put Bree down. None of us had flashlights, but the moon produced enough light. The air was lukewarm and carried a light summer breeze through the trees. I felt a pull on my shirt and looked down to see Bree handing me white roses. I put them into my back-pack and then took her hand and lead her across the field. Taylor climbed the fence and I helped Bree up and over. I started to climb and cut my knee. It started bleeding at the top of the fence. Quickly I got over then opened my bag for a band aid. It was 12:15, it had taken us a half an hour to be free of that place and we weren't turning back.


	5. 5: Keep Going

We had walked and jogged for nearly two hours when Bree started, "I'm tired!" she complained "We have to go farther than they expect us to," Taylor said quickly with a tired tone. "Can you go another hour and a half?" I asked. "Ugggggg! I'll try," She answered. "Good girl," Taylor said then picked up pace.

After the hour and a half was up we were all tired so we sat by a big tree and I gave everyone an apple and a bottle of water. Taylor handed me a blanket. Bree started falling asleep, but I stopped her. "We need to go somewhere that gives us more…shelter." Taylor and I were trying not to scare her by telling her the police would be looking for us by tomorrow. "What about that big bush over there?" suggested Taylor. We all got up and walked over to it. It was just big enough for all of us. "Maybe I should stay awake and guard," Tay said. "No, they aren't after us yet and we all need sleep." "The sun will be up in another hour. They will be looking for us fairly soon," Taylor whispered for fear of waking Bree. "It's Sunday they won't be expecting us to wake up early, or at all," I concluded.

I woke up and my neck was stiff from sleeping on the ground. As I got up Taylor handed me a piece of bread with cheese and butter. I looked at my watch and it was ten a.m. so I woke Bree up and Taylor handed her some bread, cheese and butter. After she ate I took her doll out of her bag and gave it to her.

An hour later we started jogging again. We started to slow down as the trees thinned out. Soon we came to a vacant road so we followed it. After an hour or two the sun was directly overhead and the heat was frying us. I was mostly afraid Bree would get burnt. We then stopped, rested and drank our water. Then we walked to the side of us for five minutes to get back to the shade of the trees. I saw a twisty tree and walked over to it. Taylor started climbing and Bree followed. I knew it wasn't safe, "Bree, come down!" I yelled up to her. "No!" she returned from a big branch. "Yes," Taylor said, realizing that Bree was following her, she began climbing down so Bree would follow. Taylor reached the bottom but Bree stayed in the tree. "Bree, sweetie, it isn't safe up there," I said. "Come down, now!" yelled Taylor. "You can't make me!" screamed Bree, almost at the top of the tree. She then misplaced her hand and came tumbling down. Luckily she was only up seven feet. She hit the ground and started crying. I hadn't known Taylor packed bandage, but she ran over to Bree with one. I ran over too and it up, "Will you listen to us now?" she asked looked like Bree had only sprained her left wrist. Tay bandaged. "Yes, yes!" cried Bree. "Good," I said, picked her up and set her down by our bags. "We need to keep going," Taylor stated. We all got up and started walking back to the road. When we got backed to the road we continued to walk; we walked for another five hours. With all of us word out there wasn't much conversation. It was six o'clock so we stopped and had vegetables for dinner. Soon the sun started setting so we found another bush and fell asleep.

I awoke with Bree on top of me at nine in the morning. We had breakfast then began walking again. Every bone in my body ached by the forth hour. I could start to see something in the distance. "What's up a head?" I asked curiously. "No idea, come on," Taylor mumbled as she ran a head of us. I picked up Bree and ran for five minutes toward Taylor. I soon came to a big sign that said: WELCOME TO ARIZONA! "We did it!" Taylor and I chanted. "We have traveled about 100 miles in two days. At this rate we should be in flagstaff in about four days," I stated. "How about we don't go directly to Flagstaff since it's highly populated. We could stay in the forests around it for a while." "Agreed," I said as we walked into Arizona. "Should we walk south-east for two more hours?" Taylor questioned. I nodded and we picked up pace. Soon enough we came to a small village that looked vacant except for two cars that were parked in front of one of the larger log cabins. We walked to the farthest house away from the occupied cabin. "Maybe we should see if this house has anything we need. It will add on to the list of things the cops will want us for but we are in desperate need of a tent," I said looking at Tay. Luckily one of the windows were open. We climbed inside and Taylor ran up some stair cases. Bree looked down a hall and something caught her eye so she ran to whatever it was. They had left me alone to find food. I looked in the fridge to find nothing, but the freezer had a half empty bag of chicken nuggets and the pantry was loaded. Taylor came back down the stairs with a smile on her face. Then she pulled a small tent out from behind her back. "We should stay here just for the night. Take a real shower, eat a real meal and sleep in a real bed," I thought out loud. "Sure."

I found Bree in what looked like a kid's room with all the toys and brought her to the kitchen to eat a dinner Tay had cooked. I sat down and looked on my plate to find seven nuggets, peaches, jam and bread and water. After dinner I made Bree take a bath and put on clean clothes. As soon as I put her to bed in the children's room Tay and I took our shower and also put on a new pair of clothes. Then we went to bed in the room closest to her.

I got up while Taylor and Bree were still sleeping, because it was only eight, and I took their dirty clothes. I washed the clothes in the sink. As I was scrubbing Taylor's shirt I heard someone behind me. "Reagi?" I turned around and squatted to be level with Bree. "Yes?" I asked. "When are we leaving here?" "Very soon, will you go get Taylor?" She nodded and left. I found a plastic bag and put our now-cleaned-clothes in it. They might get wrinkled, but that was the least of our problems.

When Bree came back with Taylor we had a quick breakfast and got ready to leave by ten. We ran for half an hour then started walking. We were very deep in the woods and it was beautiful. The evergreen leaves held a singing bird on a few trees while other rustled in the small breeze. None of the trees showed it was two months tell fall. At 5:30 we stopped. We all were hungry because we skipped lunch. "We should stay here for a day or two. Tomorrow morning you should take Bree and find some eggs for a treat. I know there are some around here, but go on an adventure. Keep it a surprise. She has been bored, especially with her cast still on her wrist," I quickly whispered to Taylor. "Sure," she said calmly, but she looked excited, "you could stay here and draw a tree, I know you are wanting to the way you look at them." I did want to draw a tree so I agreed. "Sounds like a plan," I whispered back to her as we finished setting the tent up. When we climbed inside it was only seven P.M. We had figured we needed some more energy since we had used it all on our seven hour trek here.


	6. 6: Intruders

_AGES: Reagan-13 Taylor-13 Bree-5 Nicole-15 Bryce-16 Brittany-14 Rose-14 Carter-14 Hunter-13 Jace-10_

6: Intruders

Waking up to the forest around me ablaze isn't my favorite thing. Luckily it was only a small fire, which Taylor made, crackling on the ground next to me. Taylor and Bree sat around it. I looked at Taylor and her look told me she hadn't told Bree about their "adventure" yet. I didn't blame her because it was only seven and they probably just woke up. "Bree do you want to go on an adventure? With Tay?" I asked trying to get her excited. "Yes!" she answered. Taylor got up and so did. Soon they left to find eggs with only two water bottles, traveling west. "Be back in two hours!" I yelled. "K" I heard not too far away. Picking up a paper and a brown colored pencil I started to draw to trunk of the tree in front of me.

An hour later I got up from the mouth of the tent and grabbed a handful of twigs to put on the dying fire. Behind me I heard a twig snap. "Back so soon?" I asked as I turned around to face them. My smile whipped off my face when I saw what was behind me. "Freeze!" came a deep voice. I was already frozen and the twigs fell from my hand as I saw a gun pointed at me. "Bryce, she's just a child," whined one of the girls behind him. "Chill babe, I'll handle this….plus she is probably a teenager," the boy, Bryce, said in a buff voice. "Are there more of you?!" he asked, but I was too scared to answer. "Are there more of you?!" he asked again louder and slower. "Yes, two," I whispered. "Where are they?" "I don't know. They should be back soon though, they left over an hour ago," squeaked my tiny voice. "Then we'll wait," he said as he sat down two yards away from the fire. His, I'm guessing girlfriend, sat down next to him. A girl with brown hair that went to her hip, sat down on the other side of the fire and patted the ground next to her, still in shock I sat down. Five minutes later Taylors scream broke the silence. I stood up and ran over to them. Bree hid behind me with a confused expression on her face. "So what are you three doing out in the forest?" Bryce asked. "We ran away from our orphanage," Taylor stated. "So, they'll be looking for you soon?" Bryce continued to question. "They should have been looking for us three days ago," Tay replied. "So there is probably a reward for you guys then?" he said hinting at something. "Bryce, no!" whispered his girlfriend. "Why not?" "Two reasons. One, if we turn them in to the police they will recognize us, two what do you have against them?" she said walking over to me. "I'm Nicole, that's Bryce and she is Brittany, there is also a girl named Rose back at our camp," Nicole said calmly. "I'm Reagan, and this is Taylor; we are thirteen, so, yes Bryce we are teenagers." "Who is this behind you?" Bryce called over to us. "That's Bree, she's five," I answered realizing he was mocking Nicole who was rolling her eyes at him. Nicole walked into the trees and Bryce followed. Taylor put some twigs on the fire, set a flat rock next to it and put the eggs on the rock to cook. After we ate the last apples and our eggs for breakfast Taylor gave Bree a paper and some colored pencils, put her in the tent and zipped it up. Not two seconds later Nicole and Bryce walked out. Nicole sat across from Taylor and I. Bryce didn't look happy and pulled out a knife to sharpen on a rock, which kind of scared me. "Would you like to live with us, be friends and be on the run? Always?" Nicole questioned. "One sec," I said as me and Tay climbed into the tent. "Why not?" whispered Taylor. "As long as you think it's safe and you realize we will probably have to obey Bryce." I whispered, "He seems like he could be nice." She mumbled climbing out of the tent. "Fine, we will," I said. "If you do anything to disobey my rules, we are turning you in," Bryce huffed. Taylor and I sat down next to the tent and Brittany. "He is going to try and find every little mistake, you better be careful," she said in a hushed voice. I looked up at my watch and it was nine-thirty so I got Bree out of the tent, packed up the tent and everything else. "Let's go back to our camp," Nicole said kissing Bryce on the head. Since we had everything packed we started walking. Taylor, Bree and I followed Nicole, Brittany and Bryce. Burrs and stickers were sticking to our shirts and shoelaces as we trekked deeper into the woods.

When we arrived at "camp" two hours later I saw two two-man tents and a slightly larger one. A girl, who I'm guessing was Rose, came out of one of the two-man tents. "Why did I have to stay here with them?!" she said pointing to the larger tent. A second later three boys emerged from the tent she was pointing to. "Come on, it wasn't that bad and-" he stopped and starred at me smiling, "Who is this?" he said referring to me, but Nicole introduced all of us. "This is Reagan, Taylor and Bree," she said pointing to each of us as she said our name. The boy with shaggy brown hair kept smiling as he walked toward me, "I'm Hunter, behind me is Carter and that is Jace," he said pointing to the younger boy. I smiled back and my stomach grumbled. It is noon and all of us are hungry. There wasn't much space at the "camp", just trees. I trailed behind Taylor who was finding an empty spot to put our tent. Sadly it was right next to Nicole and Bryce's tent. I came out eating a granola bar we had found at the cabin. "Since we are all friends now, would you mind putting all your food in the food bag?" Bryce said pointing to a bag by a fire pit. Taylor had heard and came out with all our food and put it into the bag since we had already eaten squashed bread. Then we sat around the fire and talked.

At nine we all climbed into our tents. They all were pretty close together. Around nine-thirty Taylor and Bree were asleep. I listened closely and heard the boys having a conversation. "….Taylor…." "….Reagan…." "….I like…." "….me too…." I blushed and turned on my other side. I heard Nicole and Bryce talking. They were smarter because they were whispering. I heard Nicole giggle and I sat up on my elbow. I looked toward their tent. Their shadows showed me they were making out. Weirded out by both tents activities I tried to fall asleep.

I woke up from a dreamless sleep with Bree on top of me. I went outside with her and sat in the circle formed around the smoking fire pit. I sat in between Taylor and Hunter with Bree on top of me again. Hunter handed me meat which I guessed was squirrel. "Caught it myself, with a snare," he said trying to impress me. He isn't in any luck because boys aren't on my mind right now. "We are leaving here," Bryce said, "Reagan carry the food, Taylor carry you and Reagan's back-pack, Bree carry your own and the rest of you the same as always, that is except for Carter who now has to carry Taylor and them's tent." "Sure, boss." "I told you not to call me that," he yelled back at Carter. At twelve we were ready and started following Bryce and Nicole. I started to figure out Rose and Brittany were best friends. Soon Hunter was walking next to me and we were chatting away like old friends. I was really starting to like him.


	7. 7: New schedule

It was almost six-thirty when Bryce finally let us stop walking to have dinner. "We are going to keep walking tell mid-night," Bryce said eating some crackers. I feel bad for Bree because every night she has gone to bed by at least nine. I feel even worse for myself because I'm going to have to carry her. At seven we started walking again. This time I was talking to Carter and was holding Bree's hand. Carter had short, red hair and was five inches taller than me. He was just as nice as hunter. We talked until nine when Bree started complaining. I picked her up and continued to walk. Carter slowed down and started to talk to Jace. Then Taylor came to my side.

At mid-night I put Bree down and Taylor, Bryce, Brittany, Hunter and I pitched the tents. When all the tents were up I crawled into ours and fell fast asleep.

I woke at ten and looked outside the tent. Nicole was the only other person up. I went outside and sat down next to her. "Mornin',"she said when I sat down. I nodded and starred in front of myself at a tree. "If you don't mind me asking, why did you run away from the orphanage?" she asked me. I told her about the orphanage, the people who wanted to adopt me, everything. "What about you?" I finished. She looked at me and started talking, "When I was twelve there was a house fire and only Brittany and I survived. We didn't want to go to an orphanage or a foster house so we left." "So you and Brittany are sisters? How did you find Bryce and everyone else?" She nodded and continued, "Bryce found Brittany and I, cold and starving, took us in. he already had jace," I looked at her confused, "They aren't brothers but they won't tell anyone how or why they were together. Everyone else we found like we found you. Oh, and sorry about Bryce that day he wasn't in a good mood." She finished as Rose came out of her tent. She had red hair like Carter and was only a little taller than me. Soon everyone was awake and we had breakfast I turned back and asked Nicole, "Don't you think it's a little risky traveling with a group of ten?" "Somewhat, but never mind that. Plus I've always wanted a big family." "We just wanted a family," I said looking at Bree who was on my lap. Bryce then came out his tent. "There is a small village and hour away, who wants to go?" We all raised our hands. "How about Hunter, Brittany, Reagan and myself?" I got up and grabbed my water bottle. In ten minutes we were ready to go. I felt bad leaving Taylor and Bree, but Bryce wanted _me_ to go.

When we got to the village it was completely empty. Bryce told me and Hunter to go in the cabin across from the cabin they were going to. Now I knew what Bryce was up to. We were not even low on food. Hunter put him up to this. Hunter picked the lock, like Taylor had done at the orphanage, and then he opened the door for me. I went in and walked straight to the pantry and proceeded to place the cans of food on the table for Hunter to put in his bag. I didn't want to deal with boys for a while even though I kind of liked him and Carter, but less. "Reagan, chill, he isn't going to get mad at you for taking a long time with food. If that is what you are worried about." "I know," then I dropped my voice to a whisper, "you wouldn't let him." "True." I blushed because he wasn't supposed to have heard that. I sat down on the chair across from him. "Hunter…..we're thirteen," I said confused on what to say. "So? We are on the run. I need something to stay alive for. You could be my reason." He looked at me. "Just finish putting the cans in the bag," I mumbled walking out the door, walking toward the giant cabin Bryce was in. I reached the door and heard Hunter behind me. As I walked in I could hear my heart beating from the conversation with Hunter. My heart told me I liked him, yet my mind told me I had other problems to deal with. I found Bryce in a living room with the T.V. turned on a news channel. I froze when I saw the screen. It was talking about Taylor, Bree and I then it showed a picture of the house we had robbed. Bryce turned and looked at me, "You're famous!" he laughed at his own joke. Brittany then came running down the stairs with a bag of food and we left.

When we got back to camp Bryce started telling Taylor about the news channel. She gasped. "Don't worry the police are on the wrong track," he said trying to cheer her up. I've started to like Bryce more and more every day. Taylor and Bree are already okay with him, but it's different when someone has pointed a loaded gun at you. "Good, but how?" Taylor asked. "I have no idea," he replied. Since it was two we had a snack and started to relax. I put a blanket right outside our tent and Bree sat on it, playing with her tennis ball. Taylor and I sat down too and started drawing with the colored pencils Taylor had brought. Soon Carter came and sat down next to me, but not on the blanket. "May I?" he asked motioning toward the paper and pencils. "Of, course!" I said giving him a paper and moved the colored pencils closer to him. He looked over and smiled at Hunter who was watching. I wanted to laugh at both of them, but I didn't because I didn't think I was supposed to have seen that. A half an hour latter Carter put his picture down. "Oh, it's amazing!" Taylor and I gasped in unison. He had drawn an exact replica of the fire pit in front of us. He shrugged. Bree yawned. "Bree, do you want to take a nap?" She shook her head. I knew she needed one though so I picked her up and laid her in the tent. She didn't resist, but said, "I'm lonely in here." Taylor came climbing inside. "I'll stay, I need one too," she told Bree. I nodded at her and climbed out. I decided I'd go on a walk. I went over to tell Bryce so he didn't think I was just leaving. He handed me a compass and let me start walking north. After five minutes I heard footsteps behind me. I turned my head to see who it was. Ugggg! It was Hunter. It isn't that I don't like him, I just don't know much about boys. "Reagan?" I looked at him then looked away to show I was listening. "Why don't you like me…like the way I like you?" I stopped and looked at him. "It isn't that I don't. Right now my life is complicated. You have been on the run for about two years; I haven't even gone a month. Everything is new to me, even you," I said, my voice getting lower and lower. He starred at me trying to make sence of what I had said. While he was doing so I turned around and started walking. He soon followed.

Hunter and I returned to camp an hour later and it was three-thirty. Taylor and Bree were up. Taylor was half laughing, half smiling at me because of Hunter so I glared at her which made her laugh harder.

At four we had an early dinner and started packing up the tents. Again we walked until mid-night. Bree and I were half asleep and Carter came and offered to take the food bag. I told him no but he took it anyways. I figured Carter was only doing this to make Hunter mad, but he wasn't paying attention. When it was mid-night Taylor pitched our tent by all the others. At one I was finally laying in our tent with Bree to my right and Taylor to my left. I don't think I'll ever get used to this new schedule.


	8. 8: Trouble

I woke up to Carter, Hunter, Jace, Rose and Brittany running around being their selves. "Quiet!" Bryce yelled. When I came out of the tent Bryce looked at me and said, "We are staying here a while." I was excited because that means I didn't have to walk at mid-night anymore. Bryce pointed to Hunter, "He wants to talk to you." I walked over to Hunter. "What's up?" I asked as I reached him. "Come here," he whispered to me, leading me deeper into the woods. My heart picked up pace as I followed him. "There is a village about fifteen minutes south of here, wanna go? It would impress the others and…well you know my reason." I sighed and nodded. Oh, well, I'll make him happy. "Wait here," he said as he left. When he came back he had a bag for food and other supplies. "Did you tell Bryce we were leaving?" I asked Hunter. "Yes." I started following. Fifteen minutes later we were at a village, just like he had said. We tried opening the door to a large house closest to us. It was unlocked. "Whoa, we are lucky!" Hunter said as we walked in. then he told me to explore. I found a bathroom and it had a brush and a curling iron plugged in. I ran down stairs to Hunter who was staring in the fridge. Horror reflected off his face. "I think this house is occupied!" we said in unison in fear. A minute later we heard a car door slam. I starred at Hunter, scarred. He was a little calmer though, and grabbed my hand. He ran me out the front door because the owners were in the garage. When we snuck out the front we quickly ducked behind a bush. Since he was pulling me I accidentally hit the bush and a twig snapped, making a loud cracking noise. We saw a little boy, maybe four, run around the corner. He reminded me of Jason back at the orphanage. "Mommy, mommy I think there is something in this bush!" he said running back around the corner. This time I grabbed hunters hand and quickly lead him to the other side of the house. Then we heard the mom say, "There is nothing in that bush." Then she left. I sighed with relief when I heard them go into the house. Hunter stood up and I let him help me up. "Do you want to try another house?" "Hunter that was enough trouble for one day. Let's just go back home," I said stopping. I was really surprised I said 'home' instead of 'camp'. He nodded and started walking with me trailing behind. When we got back to the safety of the trees we were walking at a fairly quick speed. Two minutes later I tripped over a big root. "Ouch!" "Reagan, are you okay?" "Yeah," I replied, but I wasn't. I started limping and Hunter turned around and saw. "Reagan…" he sighed, came over to me and picked me up. "Really, I'm fine," I whispered trying to hide my pain. "No, you're not. You were just limping and if you walk on it, it will only make it worse." I gave up trying. I just lay my head on his chest and listened to his heartbeat. The people at camp are going to make fun of us for ages! I felt his breath on my forehead and guessed he was looking at me. Ten minutes later we arrived at camp. Hunter almost set me down next to giggling Carter, but changed his mind and put me down next to the chuckling Bryce. "What happened?" he asked. "Hurt her ankle," Hunter told him. I hobbled over to the food bag, picked up a granola bar and limped over to our tent that both Taylor and Bree were in. "How was your date?" Taylor asked sarcastically. "It wasn't a date!" I calmly said, trying not to blush. "I saw you in his arms," she continued, giggling. "I hurt my ankle," I tried to defend myself and end the conversation. Then I lie down and fell sleep.

I woke and looked at my watch. It was mid-night. I had fallen asleep so early my body thought I had enough sleep. I climbed out of the tent and sat by the almost dead fire. Carter peeked out of his tent with a gun, I didn't know he had, but quickly set it down when he saw it was me. "You scarred me, I thought you were an intruder," he whispered and sat down next to me. "Want to roast a marsh mellow? I found some at the last house." I smiled at him and nodded.

At eight I awoke on Carter's shoulder. I guess I had fallen asleep last night. I looked up and Hunter was glaring at Carter. I rolled my eyes and joined the conversation. At nine Bryce was the last one to come out of a tent. "Taylor, Bree and Jace want to go find a village with me?" Bryce asked. Those three got up and finished their breakfast while getting ready. I looked at Hunter and started getting up. "Reagan, sit down, I'll tell him," Hunter said getting up. "Reagan, do you have my compass I gave you a while ago?" Bryce shouted to me as Hunter reached him. I threw the compass to him as Hunter was finishing our story. Then they left. Rose and Brittany went back to their tent. After five minutes of silence Hunter and Carter started walking toward me. I don't want to talk to them so I quickly got up and limped over to Brittany's tent. "Knock, Knock," I said from outside their tent. "Come in said Rose kindly. I climbed in and zipped the boys out. "Hey," I said quietly. "Hey, how's your boyfriend?" Brittany asked. "He isn't my boyfriend!" "Yet," Brittany stated. "I can't believe you like my brother!" Rose said. I couldn't say I didn't so I kept quiet. I was surprised that Hunter was Rose's brother and Carter wasn't because they (Carter and Rose) both had fire-red hair. Soon we started talking about other things.

When the village hunting group came back we were eating around the fire. Bryce came over to us, "I was wrong, the police are on the right track. In fact they are looking for you three in this city now. We need to move _now!_" this is the first time I had seen Bryce scarred, or rather stressed. After the rest of them ate we started packing. When all the tents were packed up we left.

An hour later we stopped. "Reagan, you are slowing us down. I know your ankle hurts, but can you go a little faster?" Bryce asked me, still worried about the police. "I'll try," I mumbled enduring the pain from my ankle and walking a little faster. After all the police didn't want us to make sure we were safe anymore, we were thieves. Soon carter took the food bag and Hunter started carrying me. Then we started walking at a faster pace.

It was ten when we stopped. It was dark and scary with giant trees hanging over us. Every noise we heard turned all of our heads, hoping it wasn't the police. We couldn't light a fire because of the smoke and we went to bed with some crackers and water.

I woke up to Taylor shaking me, at one, and when I woke I could hear voices outside. Taylor and I looked outside the tent. There was an older teenager standing outside. Bryce was pointing a gun at him and he was pointing a gun at Bryce. Taylor and I snuck around the tents waking everyone, without being seen by the teen. We woke the boys first, then the girls. "Aw, you have a little posse of children," the teen said, mocking us. Bryce kept quiet. "I don't know who the rest of you are, but I know there is a reward for those three," he said motioning over to Bree, Taylor and I, "Give 'em to me and I'll be on my way." "Never!" Hunter yelled over to him. "Shut up!" Bryce said. I was scared, what was Bryce going to do? Would he give us up? "It's ten against one. Back down!" "No it is more like one gun against one gun. I bet the rest of you are thieves too," the boy said. "And _who_ are you?" Bryce asked. "I'm Tom." "How old are you?" Bryce continued asking, to stall so he would have time to think. "Eighteen, why?" Bryce shrugged. "I had a brother named Tom," Jace said than started counting on his fingers, "and he was your age." "What is your name?" Tom asked Jace. "Jace." Tom dropped his gun and starred at Jace. "Jace?" Jace ran over and hugged Tom. "Do you want to live with me? I have my own place and I won't tell anyone one about your friends." "Yes!" Jace replied. "Okay," Tom said. It was dark, but I think they both started tearing up. "You guys got luck!" Tom yelled at us, pointing his gun at all of us one last time. Then they both left us, still frightened, tired, and confused. Did Jace just leave us that fast? Soon we climbed back into our tents and fell asleep. I've had enough trouble to last me a month! Just as Tom had said, we were lucky. Would our luck run out? I guess we have to wait and see.


	9. 9:Him

**one week later**

**9: Him**

I woke at ten p.m. and had a small breakfast. "Today we are going to the village we found a week ago, south of here. All of us are going so we can take showers," Bryce yelled so everyone could hear, inside their tents and out. When everyone was finished eating we packed everything and started to walk. My ankle was a little better and I managed not to slow down the group. Forty-five minutes later we came to a small village like all the others. "Bree and Reagan go with Carter, Rose and Taylor go with Hunter, Brittany and Nicole come with me," Bryce told us then told the boys which house to go to. Bryce had a boy in every group for safety. I went over to Taylor and got our dirty clothes so I could wash them. Then I took Bree's hand and ran to the house Carter was approaching. I helped her take a bath in one bathroom while Carter took a shower in the other. When Bree was finished I sent her to go find Carter, who was now out of the shower, so I could take my shower in the biggest shower I had ever seen. After I got dressed in my last pair of jean shorts and a T-shirt with a puppy on it I walked to the kitchen where Bree and Carter were. I filled the sink with warm water and started washing Bree, Taylor and I's dirty clothes. I never saw any of the others wash their clothes, yet every few days they had something new, and clean, on. "Watcha doin'?" Carter asked as he came up behind me. "Washing my clothes," I said in the same tone. Then Carter jumped up on the counter next to the sink and sat there. I heard something and quickly turned my head. "What?" he asked. "I'm just worried. We have been so lucky lately, it is like we are in a fairy tale that always has a happy ending. Carter, we aren't in a fairy tale and I'm scarred our luck is going to run out," I told him with a sigh as I was looking into his hazel eyes. Just then I noticed how red his hair was and how it stuck up in every direction. "You need a haircut," I mumbled, but he didn't hear me. I realized I was still staring at him. He shrugged and we both shook our heads back to reality. I couldn't tell if he liked me, he was so nice to me and is very helpful. I just can't tell if he does those things to annoy Hunter or to be just nice. I finished washing Bree's shirt and put it in a plastic bag like before. Then I fell back into a wooden chair and I could tell Carter was watching me. I didn't know why so I pretended not to notice. Bree soon came and jumped in my lap. "Bryce told everyone to meet here so we just have to wait for them," Carter said jumping down and sat down next to me. He started playing with his hand, tracing his fingers.

Later Bryce, Nicole and Brittany came in. "I wonder what's taking Taylor, Rose and Hunter so long," I thought out loud as they all got comfortable around the big glass table. "I'll go check on them," Bryce said kissing Nicole and slipped out the door. When Bryce came back, breaking the silence, he was pulling Hunter by the collar of his shirt. "Just leave her alone!" Bryce shouted at him. I got really angry when I thought Hunter had been bugging Taylor, but I realized he meant Rose and my anger immediately vanished. They were brother and sister, bound to fight. "I am never putting you and your sister in a group together again!" Bryce told him when Hunter started making excuses. "Bree will you go sit with Carter?" I whispered in Bree's ear. She nodded and got off my lap to go to Carter's. I motioned to Taylor to follow me and we walked down a hall. The first bedroom we came to I went in and shut the door. "What's up?" she asked. "I dunno. I just wanted a minute alone with you. It has been so different living with them," I paused I second then continued, "I guess I can't say different, we were alone for three days. It is not what I had planned." "I agree," she said. "What was all that about? With Rose and Hunter?" "Well first they started arguing about if we should leave the house yet or not. Then Rose said: you want to decide everything, just like you decided you wanted to date my friend! then the argument turned to you and Hunter. Soon they were shouting at each other." I blushed when she said it was about me. "What were you doing the in tire time?" I asked. "Trying to break it up," she stopped," and laughing at how ridiculous it was!" she said as we both started laughing. I thought about what she said. "You know it is Bree's birthday in a week?" "I almost forgot! We should buy her a present," Taylor said. "We'll ask Bryce for sure," I said walking out the door. "Ready to go?" Bryce asked everyone when we got back. "Where we going?" Bree asked, curious as always. I looked over to her and saw Hunter was carrying her. I walked over to her and took her from Hunter. "We don't know," I told her because no one was paying attention to her tiny voice. "We could stay here for the night," Brittany said. "It is risky," Carter began, "so I agree!" he said almost laughing. "We wouldn't be able to have the lights on….. let us have a vote, raise your hand if you want to," Bryce told us. Everyone raised their hand except me. "I do, I just can't raise my hand," I said motioning to Bree when everyone's eyes darted to me. I might have dropped her if I tried. "Then we'll stay!" he said excited.

After a dinner of canned fruits and vegetables I put Bree to bed in a loft at seven-thirty. Taylor and I walked down a hall toward the living room. Bryce was sitting alone on a brown leather couch. When he saw who it was he laid down with his hands behind his head, taking up the entire couch so we had nowhere to sit. I rolled my eyes at him, wondering why _he_ was our leader, he's so immature sometimes. "What do you want?" he said kindly. "In a week it is Bree's birthday and we were wondering if we could get her a present," Taylor said putting everything into one sentence. She is braver than I and even though Bryce is immature he is our leader and has a gun that has been pointed at my face. After all we were asking him to risk us being caught. "One problem, we have no money." "We do," I said. "How much?" "Fifty-seven dollars." He looked at us, looked away, closed his eyes and said, "We'll see." I walked out to find Nicole, Brittany, Rose and Carter in the kitchen. "Nicole, what does it mean when Bryce says 'we'll see'?" "I have no idea!" she said laughing and not questioning further. I sighed then Taylor and I jumped into the conversation.

At nine I walked into the room Bree was in and laid on the small bed the loft held. For some reason Hunter came to my mind. I did like him. He liked me. At the orphanage they didn't tell us about dating, and certainly not the age! I always figured it was like, 14 or 15. Hunter sure didn't think so. Maybe he was wrong and knew as much as I… or maybe he knew more. I concluded that if he asked me again I would say yes and see were that leads me. It will never be a real relationship anyway. I turned over and closed my eyes.

I woke up and Bree was still asleep, but Taylor wasn't there. When I went to the kitchen to eat everyone was there (Except Bree). I sat down next to Hunter and he passed me some bread and melted butter. "Rose, Nicole and I are going to get Bree's present. What should we get her?" Hunter asked. "I was thinking maybe one of those child sleeping bags and some cookies," I told him with a huge smile. He nodded, looked at his bread then back at me. He could tell I was acting differently; he could tell I was being nicer. When he finished his bread he got up and looked at me like he wanted me to follow him so I did. He led me through the hall and toward a door I had never seen before. "I want to show you something," he whispered to me. I walked through the door into a large room. It was mostly empty except for a bench and small tables that held vases full of fake flowers. I was a long, narrow room; a small ballroom. I had known the owners of this house were rich, but not this rich. "How did I miss this?" I asked. He shrugged. I started spinning in circles through the long room. Hunter followed at my side. I tripped and fell backwards because my ankle was still a little sore. Laughing, I let Hunter help me up. Although we stayed in the room for two hours hunter did not ask me. I could tell he knew I was acting different. So why didn't he ask?

When we came out of the big room everyone was sitting in the living room watching T.V. Taylor looked at me, I couldn't tell if she was mad at me for deserting her for two hours or if she didn't care. I sat down next to her and watched the news with everyone else. And of course, Bree was sitting on Hunters lap the rest of the time.

It was one p.m. when we started to leave and I made sure Bree and I were the last ones in the house before I asked her, "Why do you like Hunter so much?" "Because you like him," was her short reply. Satisfied with her answer I let her run ahead to the group. I walked out the door unaware that Hunter was hiding behind a tree that was in the house's front yard. When I was past the tree Hunter came up behind me. He picked me up and we both started laughing. When we stopped he started asking, "Reagan….. Will you….?" He stopped, not sure of what to say. He was shaking his head, mad at himself, but I knew what he was going to ask. "Yes!" I exclaimed and put my hands around his neck. Right now was all about _him._ The only problem now was I had to tell Taylor. I had to tell her I was dating the only boy she had ever disapproved of. Great!


	10. 10:The Gift is Home

When we stopped to set up camp I could hear population about two miles away. This was the closest we had been to people in a long time. We are here because we have to buy Bree's birthday present. It still scares me, being this close. Bryce said we wouldn't be here long, that we were here to get the present then go. After we set up camp we went around doing what we normally do, except for the fact I had to tell Taylor about Hunter.

I woke up the next morning to sunlight seeping thru my eye lids. I opened my eyes and sat up. Then I realized I had fallen asleep on a blanket outside our tent when I had played dolls with Bree. It was dawn and I was the only one up because it was five o'clock. I got up and went back inside the tent. I tried to go to sleep, however I lay there awake until I heard Carter outside. When I got out of the tent Carter looked at me with a piece of bread in his mouth.

In two hours everyone was up except Bree and Taylor who had probably stayed up pretty late. The group of three, consisting of Hunter, Rose and Nicole, were getting ready to go get Bree's present. Rose and Nicole were excited to get to go shopping. I gave Nicole thirty dollars to buy a box of cookies and a kiddie sleeping bag. Soon they started to leave to get the gift. Before they left Bryce kissed Nicole on the cheek and Hunter did the same to me. The place where he kissed me felt hot. It was a strange feeling for me. After they left us Brittany walked up to me and whispered in my ear, "Today is yet." I looked at her confused, she always talked in riddles. Then I remembered the day she had said he wasn't my boyfriend 'yet'. He is now so I guess she was right: today is yet, but I can't believe tomorrow is the 16th of August. Tomorrow is Bree's birthday. When Bree woke up Taylor and I were already outside. Hunter, Carter, Rose, Taylor and I had drawn pictures and made cards for her. I wrapped my blanket around her brand new sleeping bag like it was wrapping paper. Her new sleeping bad was only a foot bigger than her and had hearts on it. Then I laid the cards around the box of chocolate chip cookies. It was a very inviting sight with smiling faces all around. "I wish it were my birthday," Hunter said. "When is it?" I asked. "In three weeks." "Really?" I asked rather surprised. "Yep, I'll be fourteen!" he said excited. Fourteen seemed a lot older than thirteen even though it was only a year older. "Wow," I said as Bree came out of the tent with Taylor behind her. Taylor had been the one to get Bree. "Happy birthday!" we all yelled as surprised Bree turned around and hugged Taylor. After she hugged Taylor she ran over and hugged me. "Ready to open presents?" Hunter asked. "You mean present," I laughed. "Yeah!" Bree jumped with excitement. Taylor was looking at me and Hunter sitting next to each other. I could tell she didn't approve of the relationship. I hope that doesn't corrupt Taylor and I's relationship. Even still I could tell me and her were slowly growing apart. I would have to fix that, and I knew how, it would have to wait, though. Bree sat in front of the wrapped up sleeping bag. Everyone was telling her to guess what was inside. All she did was sit there and shrug her shoulders shyly; she hated being the center of attention. "Only one way to find out, open it!" Taylor said squeezing Bree's side to make her laugh. Then she motioned for her to do so. Then Bree removed the blanket to reveal the sleeping bag. "Thank you!" she said after looking at it awhile. She sat on my lap and she looked at the cards and pictures we had drawn. Then we all had cookies. It was fantastic!

The whole day was play. We all sat around in a circle playing charades. I was sitting next to Hunter and Nicole; Taylor sat next to Carter and Bree who was sitting next to Hunter. The boys were cracking ridiculous jokes and we snacked the whole time. It was very enjoyable and Bree was having a good time, which was the important part.

At seven thirty Bree wanted to go to bed so Taylor and I helped her get ready and tucked her in. "Night six-year-old," I said kissing her forehead. "Night." Taylor and I climbed out of the tent to find only Hunter, Carter and Bryce sitting outside. I sat by Hunter and Taylor sat down next to me. I put my head on Hunters shoulder and yawned. Before I knew it I had fallen asleep to the sound of the conversation.

I woke up to Hunter gently shaking me. I looked at my watch; it was one o'clock in the morning. "Night," he said kissing my head and getting up to go to his tent. I got up to go to my tent too. Taylor was still awake so that meant she had gone to bed only recently.

At eleven a.m. I woke up alone in the tent. I went outside and grabbed some food. "We are going to move camp," Bryce said. After lunch we started walking diagonally away from population; we walked until one in the morning and Bree didn't complain at all! We didn't set up our tents so we slept on the ground.

At ten-thirty we all got up. I had a few leaves in my hair and was pulling them out when we started walking. Three hours later we came to an odd building. "It looks like an abandoned barn," Brittany said. She was right, it was an abandoned barn. One of the doors was almost off its hinges and the paint was almost completely worn off. Bryce motioned for us to follow him in. "Leave the bags," he said. We walked in and spider webs were everywhere. Inside were eight pens and an old staircase up to a loft where a small shed was. "I've got an idea," Bryce said standing on an old bucket that was about to break so we could all see him. "This may sound crazy," he paused a moment, "but I think this should be our home. There is a town about five miles of here. Nicole and I could get jobs and earn enough money to survive the snowy winter-" he stopped when her saw our confused looks. "What?" he asked. "Well for one, it is a very risky plan," Hunter said. "Yes, and jobs?" Hunter's older sister asked. "Yes, jobs. They have no idea who I am; I do not have any records. We need a last name though, any suggestions?" "What about Evans?" I asked saying the last name of a girl at the orphanage who had gotten adopted. "Perfect, anyone who wishes to secede from this group do it now, anyone who is staying now has the last name Evans," he said then went around to everyone asking their name. Everyone ended with Evans. "Great, welcome home everyone!" he said sarcastically as the bucket broke and he fell to the floor. Everyone laughed at him until their stomachs hurt. "Tomorrow Nicole and I will go look for a job," he said getting off the floor. Nicole nodded at him. Then we went outside to get our bags. When we came back in the barn we sat around talking about our plans.

I woke at nine, the same time as Taylor and a few others. Bryce and Nicole were up and getting ready to go job hunting. Around eleven Bryce told Carter he was in charge. "Try to get this place as cleaned up as possible before we get back." "Yes, sir!" Bryce glared at Carter which made Carter laugh. Then Carter walked away. Soon they left to go find jobs. When everyone was up and had breakfast we started cleaning. Taylor and I went up to the old shed. Inside it was a pitchfork, shovel, hoe and 6 buckets. Everything was rusted, but we decided to make the best of them. Taylor took the shovel and went to go shovel out all the rotten dirt and hay. She had done that a lot at the orphanage and was good at it. I took the pitchfork and used it to get spider webs off the ceiling. The two boys went into a pen and started kicking down the wooden wall in between them. Hunter came up to me and asked me for money so he could go buy a hammer and nails. I gave him fifteen dollars out of the thirty-three left. Then he and Rose left to go find a store.

When Rose and Hunter returned we had gotten rid of all the cobwebs we could reach and Taylor and I were taking turns shoveling out the patches of spoiled dirt and filling in pot holes. The barn was starting to look very nice. Rose handed me $2.57 while Hunter took the hammer and nails to Carter. None of us had any idea what they were doing and every time someone asked them they replied with, "It's a surprise!"

By the time Nicole and Bryce got back Carter and Hunter were finished with their project, but was waiting for Nicole and Bryce to get back. "We've got a surprise for everyone!" they said when Bryce walked thru the broken door. They led us to the pens they had been working in. in the middle of the 'room' was their project, a table made from the wood that had been between the two pens. "Cool!" most of us said when we saw it. Then we sat around the table to eat dinner sense it was five p.m. "I'm impressed by all the work you guys did. This place looks amazing. Where did you get the hammer and nails though?" Bryce asked. "We bought 'em Rose and hunter said in unison. "How did job searching go?" I asked "We each have two job interviews tomorrow," Bryce replied happily. "Yay" I said.

After dinner we went to bed early; it was only eight. We all slept in the loft again. We're going to figure out sleeping arrangements tomorrow.

In the morning Hunter came over to me when I woke up. "Do you wanna go set up some snares with me?" "Sure," I said before running down the stairs and grabbing a raw pack of ramen noodles for breakfast. We walked into the trees with some rope Hunter had with him. Then he showed me how to set them. After he tested the three he put up we went to the barn. Bryce and Nicole had left for interviews and everyone was disguising sleeping arrangements. "Maybe we could make two pens into a living room like the boys did with the kitchen. Then we could use the last four pens for rooms and sleep in the groups we did for sleeping in tents," I interrupted by thinking out loud. "Okay, all in favor raise their hand." All raised our hands. "Cool, how about the four in the back for sleeping and the one across from the kitchen is the living room….?" We all nodded in agreement. "Carter, I think sense Jace left and Taylor, Reagan and Bree all share a tent they should get the big tent," Brittany said. "True, okay you girls can have the big tent," he agreed. Then Brittany yelled, "Perfect we almost have a home!"


	11. 11: Settling In

I woke to the sound of Rose and Brittany setting up a tent. I walked down the creaky stairs to find Taylor waiting for me so we could put up our tent. We went into the pen next to the one Rose and Brittany had finished putting up their tent in. Taylor and I put our new big tent up in the back left corner. We now had a room. Then I went to the kitchen to get something to eat. When I walked in I found Hunter having breakfast too. "Wanna go check the snares," when I sat down on the floor. The table was made to be level when we were sitting down. "When I finished my food," I replied and quickly finished the last of the crackers I had grabbed. Then I followed Hunter out to the snares. Both had caught a squirrel. "Want to make dinner for everyone tonight? We could cook the last four Ramen Noodle packets along with squirrel and cracker. We could have a feast!" he asked. "Sure, one problem, we don't have a pot or pan." "We could go buy one…?" "Sounds like a plan," I finished as we reached the barn. Hunter hung the squirrels on a nail in the kitchen. I old Bryce we were going out, but that it was a surprise where. He said it was okay as long as we didn't use all the money. Then he reminded me I was wanted. "Ummmmm," I said thinking, "do you have a hoodie?" I asked. He handed me one and I slipped it on. It was too big, but that would help hide my face. "Thanks, bye!" Hunter and I said as we went on our way.

Hunter and I reached the town within fifteen minutes. It was fairly big. Where we were at was an outside mall, perfect for shopping. We started walking down a street and soon came to a Dollar Tree. "We should buy stuff from here, it'll be really cheap," I told Hunter. "So will the products. We should buy stuff somewhere else. "We could buy lots of stuff here! We wouldn't need to worry about cost." I said, practically pleading. "Oh, alright." "Yay!" I said pulling him into the store.

At checkout we put a pan, a serving spoon, a pack of plastic utensils, a deck of cards, paper bowls, a vase with fake flowers and three plastic containers to store food in. Hunter picked up the vase and flowers and looked at me with a _what the heck _look. "It is to make the table look pretty!" "Girls," he sighed setting it down.

When we got back to the barn Nicole and Bryce were leaving for their first day of work. We ate a two o'clock lunch then got everyone to play cards. Carter taught us how to play a game called "Rummy".

At four-thirty we told everyone not to eat dinner because we were making a special surprise feast. Then we went to the kitchen to cook it. I started a small fire in a fire pit we had made for the kitchen. It was surrounded by rocks and it wasn't too close to the wall. It was a fire hazard, but we all agreed not to leave it unattended. I went to boil water when I realized we didn't have any. "Hunter, we don't have any water." "Oh, yeah, forgot to tell you, Bryce went out last night and bought a five gallon jug." "How much was it?" "Five bucks, we have 'bout seven left." "Seven!" I repeated surprised. "The jug's under the table," he said as he finished gutting the squirrel. I took off the hoodie and set it in Bryce's room because the fire was making me hot. Then I grabbed the jug and poured about a half-gallon in the pot. I let the fire go down some, and then I put the pot on the glowing embers. I put the jug back then I sat down next to Hunter who had just finished gutting the last squirrel. I leaned my head on his shoulder and he put his arm around me. Soon I had to get up to check on the water. It was boiling so I put in the noodles. Roughly three minutes later I poured in the chicken seasoning and stirred it all with the serving spoon. I divided up the four packets into seven bowls and put a fork into each. I left some broth in the pot so Hunter could cook the squirrel in it. I gave him the pan and helped him shred the meat of the bones. When all the meat was of the bones and into the pot he set it on the almost dead embers. While the pot was sitting he stoked up some flames. I put all the bowls on the table along with two crackers while hunter cooked the meat. After Hunter made sure all the meat was done and no pink was left we set some meat on each cracker. Then we called everyone for dinner.

At five-fifteen everyone was seated and starting to eat except for Nicole and Bryce who wouldn't be home until late. Everyone was impressed by the meal. Bree, who was sitting next to me asked, "What kind of meat is this?" "Squirrel," I told her. "Gross!" she said setting the cracker down. "It's good, try it!" I said putting the rest of my last cracker in my mouth. Then I joined the conversation about money, leaving Bree to eat her noodles. When Bree had finished her noodles she said, "I'm full!" She of course had left the crackers with meat. "Finish your meat," I told her. Almost everyone was finished eating, but they sat talking. "Do I have to?" she whined. "Yes." "But I'm full!" I picked up one of her crackers and started eating it. "Finish that one, at least." She looked at me sourly. "You are going to sit there until you do." I told her in a tone so she knew I meant it. She had started getting picky, and we couldn't have that living here. She sat and folded her arms, starring at the meat. Trying to show she wasn't going to cave. That made me mad, but I stayed calm by going back to the conversation. When everyone was finished they started to leave. Bree got up thinking she could get away with it. "Bree Gloria get back in here now!" I said using her middle name to show her I wasn't messing around. She walked back in a glared at me. "Eat that cracker," I said firmly. She obediently grabbed to cracker and stuffed it in her mouth. Then she stuck her tongue out at me and ran. I cleared the bowls and cleaned up.

We all went into the living room. The boys had also made a small table in here. Bree was sitting next to Taylor, still fuming. I sat down in between Taylor and Hunter. "Do you want to play cards?" Taylor asked Bree. "No!" Bree said violently shaking her head. "How about your doll?" "No!" "Do you want to draw? Or play ball?" "No!" "Bree, go to our room!" I cut in. "Reagan, she doesn't need to go to our room for just that," Taylor said irritated with me, but she didn't know the half of it. I looked at Taylor, then at Bree, "Bree do you want to tell Taylor what you said and did to me?" Taylor caught my drift and looked at Bree expectantly. Hunter, Rose, Carter and Brittany were all playing cards so they didn't notice Bree start to cry. "Bree, go to our room until you can have a positive attitude," I told her once again. She got up slowly and walked to our tent with me slowly trailing behind. When we reached the tent she sat down in one of the corners. "Bree, I know you are mad at me, but you can't be picky with food. You have already lost at least ten pounds. You need the protein." I told her started walking out. On the way out I paused, "You can join us when you have a positive attitude. Then I went into the living room to play cards with the rest of them.

At eight-thirty we were sitting around the small table when Bree walked in. Her green eyes were puffy from crying. She walked over to hunter before realizing I was sitting in his lap. So instead she sat next to Carter.

We were still up when Bryce and Nicole came home at ten. "How was your first day at work?" Rose asked. "Tiring. What are you all still doing up? Especially her!?" Bryce said pointing to Bree. "Stuff Bryce, things!" Taylor said dragging out the s in things with a grin. "Well, missy, you got to stop doing things!" Bryce growled. "Can we still do stuff? Instead of things?" Taylor asked jokingly which made everyone laugh and Bryce more irritated. Bryce's face grew angry because he was already tired. "Get to bed! I want to go to bed and I don't want to hear all your yapping." I got up and helped Hunter up. We all said our good-nights and went to our beds. When Taylor, Bree and I laid down we could hear whispering in the other tents. "That was pretty brave of you," I told Taylor. "Thank you!" she said sarcastically then she turned on her side. After a few minutes of muffled whispers we heard Bryce scream, "Shut up!" It went silent and soon I fell asleep.


End file.
